Serbian site may have hosted first copper makers: Finds intensify debate over Old World origins...

An archaeological site in southeastern Europe has shown its metal. This ancient settlement contains the oldest securely dated evidence of copper making, from 7,000 years ago, and suggests that copper smelting may been invented in separate parts of Asia and Europe at that time rather than spreading from a single source. The find extends the known record of copper smelting by about 500 years, an archaeological team headed by Miljana Radivojevi¸ and Thilo Rehren of University College London reports in an upcoming Journal of Archaeological Science. The pair were joined by Serbian researchers, led by Dusan Âljivar of the National Museum Belgrade, and German scientists directed by Ernst Pernicka of the University of Tübingen. Chemical and microscopic analyses of previously unearthed material from Serbia's Belovode site have identified pieces of copper slag, the residue of an intense heating process used to separate copper from other ore elements. The raw material came from nearby copper-ore deposits in Serbia or Bulgaria, they add... Although Belovode now stands as the world's oldest known copper-smelting site, that status probably won't last, remarks archaeologist Benjamin Roberts of the British Museum in London. "It's likely we'll see copper-smelting evidence at least contemporary with Belovode from the Fertile Crescent once research programs are in place at well-excavated sites," he predicts.

full title: "Serbian site may have hosted first copper makers: Finds intensify debate over Old World origins of metal production"

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2 posted on 06/29/2010 7:40:45 PM PDT by SunkenCiv ("Fools learn from experience. I prefer to learn from the experience of others." -- Otto von Bismarck)

I thought Thailand has the oldest known copper smeltering site.

I believe recent studies have revised dates considerably. Now they believe that the first copper use was no earlier than 3500 BC.

That would make sense — Thailand invented neckwear, so it stands to reason they’d invent the tie tack, hence, they needed the copper.

5 posted on 06/30/2010 3:49:11 PM PDT by SunkenCiv ("Fools learn from experience. I prefer to learn from the experience of others." -- Otto von Bismarck)

Copper Age began earlier than believed, scientists say
Monsters and Critics | Tuesday, October 7, 2008 | Deutsche Presse-Agentur
Posted on 10/11/2008 2:14:49 PM PDT by SunkenCiv
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/chat/2103332/posts

6 posted on 07/14/2010 3:24:39 PM PDT by SunkenCiv ("Fools learn from experience. I prefer to learn from the experience of others." -- Otto von Bismarck)

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